And you know what? It all worked out. I acquired a lot of paper towels in that deal, and enough toilet paper to last us a little while. (I acquired more toilet paper this week, so I’m totally set now, and can wait for the next unbeatable deal to come along.)

I learned some useful things from this experience. Someone (I can’t remember who anymore, maybe Mercedes?) kindly taught me about Hot Coupon World and A Full Cup, where I now find previews on upcoming deals at drugstores. And I’ve discovered that I can buy one or two things as I need them while I wait for a good deal. I can’t always wait (the boys desperately needed new toothbrushes a couple of weeks ago, so I used the Buy One, Get One Free Oral B Stages coupon from the June 1 P&G circular at Target), but if I can, I will. It will save me money in the long run to wait for CVS and Walgreens deals because rolling store rewards significantly reduces my out of pocket expenses. In fact, if I have a gift card, I can pay zero out of pocket at CVS, so even if the price is higher than it is at Target, I’ll still come out ahead at CVS. In sum, I’ve learned to trust The Drugstore Game.

Thanks for helping me learn, everyone!

Note: I haven’t wanted to bog CFO down with the details of my drugstore transactions, but if you’re interested in them, head over to CFO Reviews, where I’ve written about my latest plays.